Thinking interactively with visualization

Interaction is becoming an integral part of using visualization for analysis. When interaction is tightly and appropriately coupled with visualization, it can transform the visualization from display- ing static imagery to assisting comprehensive analysis of data at all scales. In this relationship, a deeper understanding of the role of interaction, its effects, and how visualization relates to interaction is necessary for designing systems in which the two components complement each other. This thesis approaches interaction in visualization from three different perspectives. First, it considers the cost of maintaining interaction in manipulating visualization of large datasets. Namely, large datasets often require a simplification process for the visualization to maintain interactivity, and this thesis examines how simplification affects the resulting visualization. Secondly, example interactive visual analytical systems are presented to demonstrate how interactivity could be applied in visualization. Specifically, four fully developed systems for four distinct problem domains are discussed to determine the common role of interactivity in these visualizations that make the systems successful. Lastly, this thesis presents evidence that interactions are important for analytical tasks using visualizations. Interaction logs of financial analysts using a visualization were collected, coded, and examined to determine the amount of analysis strategies contained within the interaction logs. The finding supports the benefits of high interactivity in analytical tasks when using a visualization. The example visualizations used to support these three perspectives are diverse in their goals and features. However, they all share similar design guidelines and visualization principles. Based on their characteristics, this thesis groups these visualizations into urban visualization, visual analytical systems, and interaction capturing and discusses them separately in terms of lessons learned and future directions

Punctuated Simplification of Man-Made Objects

We present a simplification algorithm for manifold polygonal meshes of plane-dominant models. Models of this type are likely to appear in man-made environments. While traditional simplification algorithms focus on generality and smooth meshes, the approach presented here considers a specific class of man-made models. By detecting and classifying edge loops on the mesh and providing a guided series of binary mesh partitions, our approach generates a series of simplified models, each of which better respects the semantics of these kinds of models than conventional approaches do. A guiding principle is to eliminate simplifications that do not make sense in constructed environments. This, coupled with the concept of punctuated simplifica-tion, leads to an approach that is both efficient and delivers high visual quality. Comparative results are given

Nuevas tecnologías aplicadas al análisis de la cerámica ibérica a torno del Alto Guadalquivir (S. VI a.n.e-S. I d.n.e)

[ES] En esta tesis se presenta una metodología de digitalización, sistematización y clasificación de cerámica arqueológica realizada sobre una colección de referencia compuesta por 1.133 recipientes cerámicos documentados en asentamientos de época ibérica de la Alta Andalucía (Jaén, Córdoba y Granada). Se han introducido métodos basados en nuevas tecnologías que han permitido la realización de modelos tridimensionales de recipientes cerámicos, la construcción de una plataforma on line en la que se ha incluido información gráfica y semántica referente a los recipientes y el diseño de un sistema informático de apoyo a la decisión en el proceso de clasificación basado en análisis de imágenes.Por último la información se ha insertado en el portal de la cultura europea de Europeana (http://www.europeana.eu/portal/).[EN] This thesis presents a methodology for digitization, systematization and classification of archaeological ceramics. It has been performed on a reference collection composed of 1,133 ceramic vessels documented in settlements of the Iberian period of Andalusia (Jaén, Córdoba and Granada). Methods based on new technologies have been introduced to allow the elaboration of three-dimensional models of ceramic vessels, the construction of an online platform on which graphical and semantic information is included and the design of a decision support system for the ceramic classification based on image analysis. Finally the information has been inserted in the European culture portal of Europeana (http://www.europeana.eu/portal/).Tesis Univ. Jaén. Departamento de Patrimonio Histórico. Leída el 28 de enero de 201

Cognitive Foundations for Visual Analytics

In this report, we provide an overview of scientific/technical literature on information visualization and VA. Topics discussed include an update and overview of the extensive literature search conducted for this study, the nature and purpose of the field, major research thrusts, and scientific foundations. We review methodologies for evaluating and measuring the impact of VA technologies as well as taxonomies that have been proposed for various purposes to support the VA community. A cognitive science perspective underlies each of these discussions